


A Moonlit Romance

by Crooked_bi_Writer



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: 8th year, Enemies to Friends to Lovers, Light Angst, M/M, Mostly Fluff, Roommates
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-01-25
Updated: 2019-06-29
Packaged: 2019-10-15 14:16:11
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 6
Words: 5,492
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17530271
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Crooked_bi_Writer/pseuds/Crooked_bi_Writer
Summary: After returning to 8th year, Harry and Draco end up being roommates. After some late night Secret Sharing, an unexpected friendship-turned-romance accurs.All because Harry thought Draco was sleeping.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> These are only drafts, the final thing will take a while to write. ❤

"I'll do it, Professor."

Harry knew, even then, that he messed up. He could've stayed quiet, or walked away. He could've begged for Ron to be his roommate instead. But no, his Hero Complex had to surface at the worst possible time, and there was no turning back now.

* * *

It was nearly 4 months after The War. The Wizarding World were busy repairing as much as they could after the distruction. Many volunteered to help rebuild Hogwarts, and it was set to reopen the same time as always.  


All the students who were in 7th year during The War were invited back to Hogwarts to redo their year, and were now dubbed the 8th Year Students.

New dorms were set up for them in the east wing of the Castle, and the students each had one roommate to share a room with.

A roommate from a different house, that is.

Professor McGonagall- or now, Headmistress McGonagall, made that fact  _oh so_   _subtly_  clear in the invitation letters.

"House unity is our biggest priority this year, and as the returning older students, Hogwarts school of Witchcraft and Wizardry finds it in best interest to start with our 8th years. New dorms have been set up in the East Wing of the Castle, and all 8th years shall be partnered with a roommate- from a different house. No exceptions shall be made.

Greetings  
-Headmistress Minerva McGonagall”

Many arguments and debates broke out after that, but most of the students knew not to oppose her decision.

Most Hufflepuffs and Gryffindors decided to share rooms, and Ravenclaws with Slytherins, with the exception of a few unlucky students.

* * *

 _'This is going to be fine',_  Harry thought.

All his friends were already paired off with other students. Ron was approached by Ernie Macmillan and agreed to room with him. Hermione, to no one's surprise, decided to room with a Ravenclaw, Mandy Brocklehurst.

The others paired off with a variety of Hufflepuffs and Ravenclaws, and unsurprisingly none of the Gryffindors dared to pair off with a Slytherin.

Harry was yet to find a roommate. Many boys approached him, but a simple "I'll let you know later, thanks" was all he replied with. He did not let anyone know. That, he realized, was where he made his first mistake.

Harry and Professor McGonagall had had several meetings during the holidays discussing the rebuilding and reopening of Hogwarts, along with plans on what is to happen to the 8th Year students. Their biggest problem were the Slytherins. Most of them declined the invitation back to Hogwarts, but some reluctantly accepted it.

All parties knew that the Slytherins would  
struggle to adapt at Hogwarts this year, especially since some were death eaters themselves.

The biggest struggle was the fact that they would all have to find roommates that would protect them from any harm from other students. Or rather, roommates that wouldn't try to suffocate them in their sleep.

Their main focus in their meetings were whether or not to personally pair students up or to let them choose their own roommates. Although they decided to give the students their own choices, both Harry and McGonagall knew the Slytherins would find it difficult to partner up. They just needed to have hope.

* * *

Harry had four days left to find a roommate.

He only realized that on his trip to a final meeting with McGonagall. He went through all the boys he could remember that approached him, but none of them seemed to tick his interest. He'd have to make up his mind soon, though.

Harry glanced as his watch and saw he was walking on a thread. He had two minutes to get to the office, which was on the other side of the castle. _Better hurry then_ , he thought, starting to run.

* * *

"...somebody for you, but you will not be the exception."

Opening the office door, Harry barely heard McGonagall finish her sentence. He ran all the way there and let out an exhausted breath.

"Apologies, Professor- er, Headmistress, I-," he carefully took a deep breath and continued, "I tried to get here on time so I ran, could- could I please have a glass of-" he abruptly stopped his sentence when he saw who McGonagall was talking to.

Draco Malfoy.

He stood a few feet from the Professor, a blank look on his face. He was staring directly at the desk, ignoring Harry's presence.

"Mr Potter, if you would please sit down in the corner until I am finished here. There is tea and biscuits on the table."

Shocked by Malfoys unexpected presence, Harry slowly nodded and moved to the corner, bumping into every object on his way. He was staring at the blond in front of the room.

Malfoys cheeks were hollowed and he looked a bit thin, but he stood tall, like he always does, face set serious and emotionless.

Except for his eyes, though. His stormy grey eyes had a hint of worry in them. A small ' _why_ ' flew through Harrys thoughts, but was suddenly pushed away by  _Dear Fucking Merlin, Draco Malfoy is beautiful._

Shivering at the thought of that, Harry attempted to clear his mind and snapped his eyes towards Malfoy and McGonagall.

She was insisting that Malfoy should find a roommate, while he was asking to room alone. The professor offered several suggestions, but eventually Malfoy softly whispered, "No, thank you, I'll figure it out." and, with a hard look on his face, turned to the door.

"I'll do it, Professor."


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> How it all happened.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Just another draft, not yet finished ❤

His exclamation not only caused a relieved bark of laughter escape McGonagall's lips, but both he and Malfoy froze in surprise of his words.

"Mister Potter, that's brilliant! If the two oldest rivals in our school can call truce and become roommates, anyone can," Malfoy was still staring wide eyed, shock clearly set on his face. "Your bags will be taken to your room immediately, I hope both of you can look past any indifferences you might have had. Thank you! Off you go now, both of you."

Harry stood from his seat, subconsciously grabbing a hand full of biscuits, and started walking to the door. He mentally repeated  _'why did I do that, why did I do that, why did I do that?'_  as he walked, stuffing biscuit after biscuit into his mouth.

Lost in thought, he barely noticed when a certain confused looking blonde stepped next to him, silently following him to their new room.

Just as they reached the door, Harry suddenly snapped out of his thoughts when Malfoy curiously whispered, "Why did you do that?"

He quickly looked up to see a frowning Malfoy staring directly at his shoes. He waited patiently, but when Harry didn't respond, he quickly finished. "You don't always have to jump in and save everyone, Potter, I can take care of myself. Thank you, but I'll talk to Minerva tomorrow to sort this out." He said  _Bungalow_  and stepped into the opening door.

Harry, still staring after the blonde, quickly entered the room, putting his things on the bed opposite of Malfoy.

A few minutes of silence passed. Malfoy left his luggage unpacked next to his nightstand and sat on the bed, book in hand.

Harry, however, started to unpack. He tried to find words to explain why he did what he did, but he himself didn't know the answer. Eventually he settled with a rushed, "Just stay." As he climbed into bed. He turned his back to Malfoy, but could still feel eyes burning behind his head.

Surprisingly, Malfoy stayed.

Harry woke the next morning to find an empty made bed, and saw that Malfoy unpacked his own bags. They never attempted to interact and it became a unspoken agreement not to acknowledge the others presence wherever they were.

It all changed, though, when Harry started having nightmares again. After years of dealing with them, he taught himself quite a few techniques to wake up as quick ad possible, but that caused many sleepless nights.

Instead, he constantly fell asleep in class. He was tired and moody and always first to go to bed, knowing well that he would be awake within the hour anyway. And that is how, one odd and restless night, he made a very strange decision.

* * *

 

"Malfoy?"

It was nearly 1am.

A few weeks without sleep has put Harry on the edge. Ron and Hermione had their own problems, and McGonagall already has to worry about the 8th year students adjusting to school, none of them needed another problem to handle.

So, he did the next- incredibly dumb- best thing.

"Malfoy?" He tried again, a bit louder. When Harry was certain that the other boy was sleeping, he officially decided that it was the only thing left to do.

"I-"  _This is stupid. I've never done this before. What am I doing? "_ I've been awake for three weeks now. I probably haven't, y'know, slept for more than a few hours," He shook his head and thought,  _Why am i still talking_? But yet, he continued, "and I haven't told anyone either. It's probably obvious, I fall asleep in class all the time. It's just, I can't help it."

Harry looked over to the bed next to his, only to be met by a mountain of blankets and blonde hair. He sighed, thinking _well, I'm already nuts, why not just as well continue?_

"I have nightmares. Had 'em since I was a kid. Only Ron and 'mione knows, but they don't know what it's about or that I still have them. It's just, I don't want them to worry, y'know? It's not like I can go up to them and say  _'Hey, I still have nightmares about Voldemort trying to kill me in my childhood cupboard._ ' Without some crazy _dear-merlin-are-you-okay_ reaction. I just need to talk about it, not get asked a million questions and be observed 24/7, is that too much to ask?"

Harry stayed quiet for a few seconds, listening to the sound of even breathing on the other side of the room. His thoughts rambled on for a minute, until he eventually let out a sigh and slid down further into the bed.

"Thanks for listening. Kind of."

And for the first night in weeks, Harry finally fell asleep.

* * *

 

"Malfoy?"

It was nearly 1 am.

Potter's restlessness had been going on for three weeks now. Nights were spent tossing and turning and classes were spent with some professor dramatically clapping their hands to wake Potter up.

Neither Weasley nor Granger seemed to notice, though, as they are always too busy snogging or giggling about something, so that left Draco alone to observe.

"Malfoy?" Potter asked again.  _What is he trying to do?_ He wondered, deciding to stay quiet and see.

Then, Potter started talking.

_He probably thinks I'm sleeping,_  he realized,  _but why is he telling me all of this?_   Letting out a quiet breath, he listened to Potter talk about nightmares.

_The only problems Granger and Weasley has is their lack of breathing, given that their tongues are always down the others throat,_  he thought bitterly.

But Potter continued, "It's not like i can go up to them and say 'Hey, i still have nightmares about voldemort trying to kill me in my childhood cupboard.' and not-" Draco froze at that.  _Childhood cupboard? What's that supposed to mean?_

Draco shook his head slightly. Still confused about Potter's sudden desire to spill all his secrets, Draco tried to calm down. He'll have to find out what the reason behind all of this is, but in the mean time he listened to a strangely babbling Potter.

A brief moment of silence passed, in which Draco felt eyes burning into the back of his head, until Potter softly whispered, "Thanks for listening. Kind of." and climbed further into his bed.

Draco was surprised by the soft sound of snoring he heard from the other man a few minutes later, but thankful nonetheless.


	3. Chapter 3

The next day went on as usual. Although Harry woke up slightly more refreshed than he had been in the past few weeks, he was still tired and falling asleep in class.

The only difference was that he wasn't woken by the professors anymore. Everytime he closed his eyes, they would immediately snap back open, whether it was from a mild stinging jinx or a piece of paper hitting him on his head. He looked around to try and find the person doing it, but eventually gave up and thought, _thanks anyway, stranger._

When classes were finally over, Harry told Hermione and Ron not to wait up for him, as he would be doing his homework in his room.

Instead, when he got to his room, he stumbled in and fell to the bed, sleep overtaking him in mere moments.

An hour later, Harry woke to find books and a bag laying all around the room, and the sound water pouring echoed from the shower. He also found that he fell asleep in the wrong bed.

When the shower turned off, he quickly raced over to his own bed, stripping down into his boxers and attempting to kick his books out of the way. He jumped in under the covers just as Malfoy exited the bathroom, wearing silky dark blue pyjamas. He turned to face Harry, eyebrows raised, and stood waiting.

Harry's thoughts rambled for a minute, until he eventually blurted, " I- uhm, I'm sorry. I didn't realize where i fell asleep. Er- Sorry." He looked at the ceiling, a blush creeping over his face.

"It's fine." Malfoy seemed incredibly calm. He walked over to his bed, turned out the lights and turned his back to Harry.

Suddenly it was silent, but it seemed too peaceful to be awkward. The sound of soft breathing filled the room as they lay waiting for the calmness of sleep to arrive. It never did.

* * *

It was nearly 1am when Potter whispered, "Malfoy?"

_It's happening again, I see._

The combination of Potter's restlessness and Draco's inability to sleep without seeing the Dark Lord staring at him has kept Draco just as awake as Potter.  _At least I'm not spilling my secrets to my enemy,_ he thought bitterly.

"Malfoy?" He asked again.

Draco stayed quiet. He was facing the ceiling, eyes shut tight, waiting for Potter to continue.

"Okay, so, this is weird. I don't know why I keep doing this- or I do, but I don't." He heard a soft laugh escape Potter's lips, and had the sudden urge to laugh with him. _This really is weird, Potter,_  he thought, smiling softly.

"Uhm, I'm gonna talk about my nightmares again. Maybe if I, I don't know, get it out, it'll disappear. Or not, but it's worth a shot." Draco waited anxiously as Potter took a deep breath, "No one really knows what they're about. The guys just slipped me some sleeping potions and put up silencing charms, and 'mione taught me some quick wake-up techniques, but they all thought it best not to ask. I have to tell someone, though," Draco suddenly felt eyes burning into his face, "so why not tell my ex-nemesis of seven years."

A feeling of guilt flushed over him, not just for the nemesis comment, but also for the fact that he is still listening. Yet, he stayed quiet and waited for Potter to continue.

"I was never really beat as a kid, only twice, and that was because I was screaming dead murder from my cupboard. I was seven when I first dreamt of my mum screaming, y'know, before she was killed, and I woke up screaming with her. The second time was exactly the same, but I was nine." There was a slight quivering in his voice, but he cleared his throat and carried on.

"The Dursleys caused most of my other nightmares, though, but I usually woke up before them. Dumb things, really, like big plates of delicious food around me that I couldn't reach, or a warm loving embrace that I could never have. They didn't really give a fuck-" Potter took a deep breath, clearly on the verge of tears.

Draco wanted to do nothing but reach for him, but quickly shook away the thought.

The room fell silent, and eventually Draco thought Potter gave up, until a soft whisper filled the room once again.

"They took away my hope. They left me feeling unloved- unlovable. I hated them, still do. Molly was the first person to show me a glimpse of love. That's Ron's mum, but you knew that. All the Weasleys took me in as their own. That's why I get so- so _furious_ when you insult them. When anyone insults them. They are my family, they showed me that love exists." He took another deep breath, "I went completely off track there. From nightmares to being all sappy. Good thing you're sleeping, otherwise your eyes would've rolled to the back of your head with my _inconsistency_ ," He laughed again, "but that's a story for another night. Thanks for, well, I don't know, sleeping while I'm blabbing on about my life. Yeah. Erm- yeah."

And with that, Draco was lying wide awake with a softly snoring Potter next to him.

Once again, sleep did not come easily for him that night.


	4. Chapter 4

Over the next week, they followed the same routine each night. They would lay in bed wide awake until nearly 1am, when Harry would start spilling secrets. Then, when he finished, a mysterious calmness would overcome him and he would sleep like a baby the rest of the night. Draco, on the other hand, would either fall into a peaceful asleep at the same time, or lay awake, pondering about new revelations.

Harry often spoke about his past. He never went into specific details, given that he nearly bursts into tears each time he tried, but from what Draco could tell, it most definitely wasn't all sunshine and roses like he thought for most of his life.

Although each night was spent the same, the days started to change drastically. 

Harry would get to his room after classes to find neatly written notes from the subjects he missed laying on his dresser, and when he woke, it would be to a steaming cup of cocoa and a humming in the showers.

* * *

 It was just after the trails that Harry realized exactly how much he fancied him. He defended Narcissa and Malfoy there, and after Narcissa came over to thank him and apologise, finishing with a whispered  _We owe you_ , he was left alone with the boy.

His face was sunken, cheeks hollow and he had black circles around his eyes. He looked as if he hadn't eaten in days or slept at all. 

Harry expected nothing other than a muttered, "Thank you, Potter" and a quick handshake, but he was surprised to suddenly be pulled into a bone crushing hug. He stood frozen in shock for a few seconds until he gave in and hugged back, and they stood like that for what seemed like hours, but was actually only mere minutes.

What Harry admired most, though, was when Malfoy took a step back, wiping some fallen tears from his eyes, he immediately looked at him with a blank expression. He held out a letter, whispering, "Read it. Burn it." He then turned around, following his mother out of the room.

And that's what Harry did. That night, he sat on his bed at Grimmauld Place, reading a three page long letter from Draco Malfoy. In it, he not only thanked Harry for helping him and apologised for his part in the war, but he also promised to do everything and anything he could to become a better person, in the Wizarding world and Muggle world alike. The last thing he wrote about was something about a Wizarding Life Debt, but that was written off as something to ask about later.

He read the letter three times before burning it, just like Malfoy asked. Harry only saw him a few times after that, but they had come to a mutual agreement to be civil. Harry also noticed how quickly he grew back to health again. He still had circles around his eyes, but he had put on some weight, softening up his features with it, and his Dark Mark was perfectly hidden under the most powerful disillusionment spells.

He decided to write his feelings off as some silly admiration, but listening to the soft humming from the showers each morning brought him a strange sense of gratitude for the fact that he was sharing a room with Malfoy.

Harry has also started bidding Malfoy a good morning and goodnight, softly whispered into the silence of the room each day.

Harry decided not to ask Malfoy about the cocoa or letters, he even had a suspicion that it was him throwing the jinxes in class, but he thought it best to just leave things the way they were. So he did.

* * *

 "Malfoy?" 

The whisper came again, "...Malfoy?"

Draco had made peace with the fact that he listens to Potter each night. He secretly liked to imagine them being friends telling eachother late night secrets, and he also liked to believe he knew Potter better than anyone else.

That night, for the first time, Potter spoke of his parents.

So far, Draco only knew about the terrible muggles who raised him, along with Dumbledore, who was not at all as innocent as he seemed, and Snape, who ended up doing the right thing, but for completely fucked up reasons.

All Draco knew about Harry's parents is how they died, but that night Harry introduced him to the real story behind the famous Potters.

"Apparently mum and dad hated each other. Or actually, mum hated dad and he had some strange fascination with her, so he pulled pranks and made fun of her for attention. In the end, though, they realized just being polite and actually having decent conversations could've stopped all the trouble. Oddly, the Potter Family Bloodline wasn't all pureblooded like everyone assumed, since they never really made their children marry other purebloods, it just happened. They were all supportive of dad and mum, and that's all I ever needed to know."

Somehow, this made Draco feel happy for Potter, rather than sympathetic. With all the problems and traumatic happenings, at least he got to know his family loved and accepted eachother. 

"Sirius, y'know, my godfather and your mum's cousin, well, he actually told me something I'd never forget. He said to me, _"Harry, your dad lived a wonderful, happy life. He never spent a single day alive without your mum. She was older than him, and she... Well, she was the one to go last. So he truly spent his entire life with your mum there."_ I never understood why he would say something like that, but it's true. I still don't know how to feel about it."

Draco had heard about the  _all famous_  Sirius Black. Not only was he the Prisoner of Azkaban, he was also Professor Lupin's Husband. His mother sometimes spoke about him in her sleep, along with whispers of her sisters and a boy called  _Regulus_. 

He tried to ask about him, but gave up quickly after Aunt Bella set fire to a part of the Manor at the mention of his name.

He focused back to Potter who, after a moment of silence, spoke again. 

"I sometimes wonder if I have a soulmate. My mum and dad had each other... Sirius and Remus also fell in love after years of friendship. Everyone expects me to go off and marry some gorgeous young witch and have seven little kids, even the Weasleys were mad when I broke things off with Gin. It was all just a big mess."

Potter sighed, shifting in his bed.

"What if I just want to go off and be alone for a few years, have some fun and live my life? What if i want to meet some people, experiment. I could become a baker, or even a teacher. Right now, i could become a painter."

Potter shifted again, and whispered," I dont owe anyone anything."

Draco did nothing but silently agree.


	5. Chapter 5

Things between the two rapidly started changing. They went from Potter bidding Draco a "good morning" and "good night" to Draco actually starting polite conversations. Both agreed not to speak of the past and start fresh, but nights were still spent with Potter talking to a _supposed-to-be-sleeping_ Draco.

Potter was the one to first call him Draco. It happened the night he spoke about Lockhart and how he was obliviated, and for a second he forgot to whisper because he was laughing so hard that all he could say was, " _It was so hilarious, he was all 'who are you?' And immediately whispered 'who am I?' And he started bombarding us with questions. I wish you were there to see it, Draco. It was brilliant!"_

The next morning, he was also greeted with a " _mornin', Draco"_  while humming on to the tune Draco was humming in the shower. Even though Draco still insisted on calling him  _Potter_ , he did start to think of him as Harry instead.

They even started studying together. First on their own separate beds, then the library and now every night they sat in silence on Draco's bed, with the latter concentrating hard and Potter just... staring.

He often studied Draco's face.  
Potter thought he didn't notice, but it was quite obvious seeing as he would just openly stare. There had been a few moments he would reach out as if to touch Draco's cheek, or lift his head to look at him, but he would always pull back and say that he was stretching.

Harry has started  _'not'_ telling Draco about his day to day life. The last time he spoke about something serious, it was more about Sirius Black. Afterwards, with a teary giggle from the pun, he said, " _That's basically all of it. Maybe some day I'll have the courage to tell you more, and maybe in person, but for now, thank you for listening"._  The next night he just told Draco about some things that had happened in his classes.

 

It was barely four months into the school year when one night, Harry didn't talk. Draco laid there, waiting for the soft question of " _Draco?"_  to come, but it never did. He realized that he did hear some soft snoring earlier, but he just expected Harry to wake up and continue his routine. He hadn't missed a single night since he started talking.

On one hand, Draco was surprised and relieved to know that Harry could have a full nights sleep, nightmare free. There had been two seperate occasions, only two, where Harry woke up screaming. Both times, Draco would end up sitting by him, humming their Made-up Morning Tune. The next morning, when they woke next to eachother, they just calmly shifted away and went on with their day, neither wanting to be the one to bring up how it had been the best nights sleep either of them had had in months.

On the other hand though, Draco couldn't help but think,  _How am I supposed to get some rest now?_   When Harry spoke at night, it brought him a sense of calm,  allowing Draco to sleep at least a few hours before the day started.

Now, he was awake. He knew that the question wouldn't come tonight, even though he hoped it would, but he stayed awake, disappointed and exhausted, and eventually drifted off into a light, uneasy sleep.

The next morning was tough. Draco, who barely slept more than half an hour, woke up to Potter yelling " _Draco, Why are you still in bed? You always wake up before me, are you okay_?" As he rushed to the shower. The rest of his day was spent falling asleep in classes and nearly falling off the moving stairs on his way to lunch.

That night, he silently begged for Potter to start talking, but he was once again just met with the soft sound of snoring next to him.

Three days later, Draco had had enough. He thought, " _Well, maybe if I do this, I could start falling asleep too. It's worth a try."_

So that night at  _nearly_  1am, Draco started to talk.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Wow, such an unexpected ending XD
> 
> But I hope you all like it. ❤
> 
> Hello hi people, it's currently the 28th of June and I'm here to 1-Apologise for not posting in like... 5 months lol and then 2- to tell you im going to be posting more soon! I wrote some little snippets of ideas and im busy turning those into full stories to put in here. 
> 
> I spent the past two days going through chapters 1-5 and fixing minor mistakes, as well as replacing some words and sentences. Not much has changed, but there is definitely some differences.
> 
> I'm excited to post again, and I cant wait to read more comments ❤


	6. Chapter 6

With their rooms always full, Hermione had no choice but to finally go to the _hidden castle_ Ron has been talking about for the past week. The castle turned out to be a pillow fort that Ron built by himself on the edge of the lake, spelled to stay clean and stable.  
  
As they sat on a thick blanket and laughed about Ron's knowledge, or lack thereof, of Muggle Technology, Hermione realized that he looked lost in thought.  
  
It grew silent for a minute, and she was about to ask when Ron suddenly blurted, "Harry seems happier."  
  
Another moment of silence followed, and Ron looked over to see Hermione caught off guard. He was surprised by her reaction, but continued," You must've seen it too, 'mione. He looked like death for the past few months, and suddenly it's like... I dunno, he just looks better. I reckon it must have somethin' to do with Malfoy."  
  
It was clear that Hermione, the brightest witch of her age, had no idea what he was talking about. "Er- Ron, since when has Harry been feeling bad? He was doing quite alright when I saw him last week and just yesterday he spent the day studying- _oh_ ," she looked up at Ron," since when does Harry study all day? Merlin Ronald, why haven't you said anything?"  
  
She glared at Ron with a serious look on her face, and he couldn't help but fall over in laughter. "mione, are you telling me _I_ noticed something that _you_ didn't? That's a bloody well first!"  
  
Eventually he calmed down and noticed her blushing furiously. As he sat up and moved closer to her, Hermione whispered, "I realize it now... Merlin. How could I not see it?"  
  
"It's not your fault, 'mione. If I didn't hate Malfoy as much as I do- erm, did- I might've not seen it either. We are so caught up with finally being together that we forget about Harry a bit." Ron picked up a small rock and threw it into the lake.  
  
Hermione sat looking at him, and realized what he said. "Ron, what do you mean ' _did_ '?  
  
It took a moment for him to remember what he said, and he looked away to the ground.  
  
"See, I really hated him. I kind of loathed his existence. When Harry told me he and Malfoy would be sharing a room, I was frightened and furious and I was so sure that Malfoy would try something so I ended up sort of... stalking him? But the more I saw, the more I realized that he is actually a harmless person. 'Mione, he and Harry have been quite friendly and it seems like he makes Harry feel better. I don't exactly know what their situation is, but I think it's good. For both of them."  
  
Hermione looked surprised, impressed, and also slightly lost, so Ron decided to change the subject.  
  
For the next few hours, they continued talking about plans for the upcoming break, with Harry and Malfoy still running in the back of both their heads.

* * *

"Potter?"

Silence.  
  
Draco tried again, and after there was no reply, he started.  
  
"I'm not stupid, you know. I'm not evil or weak either. I knew what I was getting into when I took the mark. I regret what it caused, the loss and pain, the sadness... Yet, I still believed I was doing the best thing. I do realize it wasn't now, but I see you staring at my mark with what seems like pity, and I don't need it, Potter. I don't want it. I knew what I was doing and I regret doing it, but I can't take any of it back now, so it's no use to try and pester me with pity or guilt. Right now all I can do is move forward and try to be the best person I can be... So stop looking at me like you want to save me."  
  
For the first time in four months, Draco realized how and why Potter never stopped talking. The feeling of being able to open up made it nearly impossible to close his mouth again, and he just wanted to keep on going and going.  
  
"I don't need your saving, I can save myself, thanks. And I hate your hair."  
  
Feeling tense and slightly ecstatic, Draco turned his back to Potter and tried to go to sleep, barely realizing when it finally came and stayed for the first time in months.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi guys, I just want to say thank you so much to everyone who comments and leaves kudos. I appreciate it a lot! 
> 
> The story is a work in process and I want to say that if any of you have any advice to give or suggestions about my writing, feel free to tell me. I'm completely open to any constructive criticism- I'm definitely not the best when it comes to tenses so all help is appreciated XD
> 
> I hope you all enjoy the new (very short) Chapter and I'm quite excited for what's to follow.
> 
> Thanks again❤

**Author's Note:**

> I'll try to update as often as possible, but still only drafts ❤


End file.
